<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Youths, Power Lines, and Coupons: The Story of a Power Outage by Livdonna</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23641888">Youths, Power Lines, and Coupons: The Story of a Power Outage</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Livdonna/pseuds/Livdonna'>Livdonna</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>New Girl</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Attempt at Humor, Comedy, Furguson is the man, Gen, Humor, My First Attempt at Writing Something Funny, Nick is sarcastic AF, One Shot, Power Outage, Sarcasm, Schmidt likes coupons, Why Did I Write This?, Winston Likes Puzzles</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 20:54:38</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,444</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23641888</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Livdonna/pseuds/Livdonna</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Nick Miller's Friday afternoon plans of relaxing and watching some TV is ripped to shreds when a power line is knocked over during a windstorm.  Him, Schmidt, and Winston struggle to find ways to occupy themselves without technology.</p>
<p>WARNING:  This story features much whining, complaining, destruction by "some youths", mispronunciations of many words, and unique games involving 'cup-ons'.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Youths, Power Lines, and Coupons: The Story of a Power Outage</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Sooo... the other day I lost power for three and a half hours and the whole situation sparked an idea for a story about how the New Girl gang would deal with a power outage.  (and it distracted me and passed a lot of time!!!)</p>
<p>Also, I never write comedy pieces so this was completely out of my realm of writing so I hope I didn't fuck it up LOL.  It was fun to write though so it was worth it!!!</p>
<p>Hope you like it!!!  Let me know what you think :)</p>
<p>ALSO, hope everyone is staying healthy and safe with everything going on!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
<p></p><div class="adn ads">
  <p></p>
  <div class="gs">
    <p></p>
    <div class="">
      <p></p>
      <div class="ii gt">
        <p></p>
        <div class="a3s aXjCH">
          <p>It was 3:00pm on a Friday afternoon when it happened, and all Nick Miller wanted to do was watch a little bit of quality television.  He had finally gotten Schmidt’s obnoxious self to leave him alone for a bit, after sitting through his ridiculous, but also inevitable, ‘why hasn’t Cece gotten in touch with me today?’ ramble. </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Jess was out shopping with Cece, and Winston was well distracted occupying Furguson, his newly beloved furry friend that wasn’t even his to begin with, but that’s a completely different story.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>The point is, there was finally some peace and quiet, and Nick was free to do whatever he pleased.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>And... <em>that’s</em> when it happened.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Right in the middle of the live sports game he was watching, the TV screen went black, the lights went out, and the charger that his phone was connected to stopped charging.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>It was in that very moment that Nick’s dream of a perfect Friday afternoon was crushed...</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>...and it was all due to nothing but a power outage.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“You... gotta be <em>fuckin’ </em>kidding me...”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>All Nick wanted to do was watch some TV, and now he couldn’t.  He let out an exasperated sigh of frustration, as he slammed the remote down on the coffee table in front of him in total despair, beginning to wonder what else the universe had in mind to screw up his day.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick’s train of thought was immediately interrupted by Schmidt stomping into the living room, with his arms across his chest in distress and frustration.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“A power line was just knocked over!  Did you hear?”  He let out a cranky sigh like an old man, and shook his head angrily.  “It was probably from some <em>youth</em>!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>That received a huge eye roll from Nick, as he stared at him point blank in the face.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“You<em> seriously</em> think someone <em>purposely</em> knocked over the power line?”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Within a second, Schmidt was up in Nick’s face.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Those youths always have some sly tricks up their sleeves.  You never know what they’ll come up with next!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>It’s times like this where Nick catches himself wondering how he’s been able to tolerate Schmidt for this long.  He shakes his head and looks away, as Winston makes his way out of his room to join the two.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Seriously, Schmidt?  ‘<em>Youths</em>’?  You sound like you’re eighty.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Well, who else would knock over a power line?!”  He lets out a huff.  “<em>Rascals</em>.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Winston rolls his eyes as he joins Nick on the couch, staring at the blank television screen.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“So... anything exciting planned?”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick turns his head to stare at him, his eyes narrowed in annoyance, as sarcasm laces his tongue.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Well, yeah... You see, I was gonna start watching a really exciting football game.... That was until “<em>some youth</em>” decided to knock over a power line,” he says, as he shoots Schmidt a glare.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Winston sits in silence, but then puts a supportive hand on Nick’s shoulder, patting it empathetically.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Yeah...”. He nods his head, “I know...”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt’s hands are in the air, as he complains from the kitchen table.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Now, what am I supposed to do?  I was in the middle of blow-drying my hair——“</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>He’s immediately cut off by Nick, who is bubbling with complete irritation.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Are you kidding me?  You’re complaining about your <em>hair</em>?!”  He puts his head in his hands and moans.  “I just wanted to watch some freakin’ TV!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Winston looks at him as he points to his phone.  “You could always watch it on there.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick shakes his head, “I can’t.  I’ll waste the battery, and then I won’t be able to charge it.”  He takes a breath and sighs, “...and who knows how long it’ll be out for.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Winston nods his head.  “That’s true.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt suddenly walks over to the couch with a look of realization.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Hey... My car has an outlet where we could plug our phones in.”  He smiles, and speaks with a sense of pride, “We could charge them in there.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>That receives impressed head nods from Nick and Winston.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“You know... That’s not a bad idea Schmidtty.  You’ve outdone yourself this time.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt’s sense of confidence is evident, as he smirks and winks at Nick.  “I know.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick and Winston stare at each other and scream in unison.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“JAR!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <ul>
<li>* *</li>
</ul>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“So... how long do you think this is gonna take?”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt shrugs his shoulders.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“I don’t know... It depends.  We’ll just have to wait it out and see.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>There is a long, slightly uncomfortable silence, until Nick speaks through almost gritted teeth.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“So... you’re telling me that we’re just gonna <em>sit </em>here and <em>wait</em> for our phones to charge with the engine running?”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Um... yeah,” Schmidt answers, a matter of factly, as he pulls the windshield mirror down to observe his half blow-dried hair.  He looks at Nick, “Why?  Did you have any other ideas?”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick raises his eyebrows in annoyance and shoots him a look that screams ‘<em>no shit, Sherlock</em>.’</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“We could at least <em>drive</em>... <em>somewhere</em>.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Winston pipes in, “Yeah, Schmidt, you’re running low on gas.”  He points to the gas gauge which is signaling that the gas tank is nearly empty.  “We could fill that up to pass time.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt’s eyes bug out, as he pushes his foot on the gas petal. </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Alright, lets do it!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick sighs in relief, as the car moves toward the exit of the apartment complex.  <em>At least we’ll be a little occupied</em>, he thought.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>The problem is that he must have thought too quickly, because the second Schmidt was about to turn onto the highway, another car pulls up right next to him.  The window rolls down and the dude inside signals that he has something important to say.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Hey... Just wanna let you know that I just tried leaving the complex and it turns out both sides of the road are blocked because of that power line, so there’s no way to get out...”. </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick lets out a loud groan.  He doesn’t know how much longer he can stop himself from banging his head against the windshield of the car.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>The man laughs to himself, “Unless you wanna drive over the median... That’s what a cop told me.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick immediately nudges Schmidt and basically pleads.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Come on... We can do that.  It’s fine—-“</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt cuts him off and snaps.  “Uhm... NO.  We are NOT driving over the median!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Why the hell not?!  The cop said we could!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“That is absolutely ridiculous!  Do you know how much I paid for this car?!  I am not taking ANY risks!”  He begins to turn back into the complex, as he thanks the man in the other car.  “Thank you for letting us know.”  </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick opens his mouth to argue, but Schmidt sticks to his guns.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“You are acting like an imbecile, Nick!  We are turning back.  No exceptions.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Then what the hell are we supposed to do then?  Just sit here?!”  Nick groans, and grabs his phone.  “If that’s the case, I’m just watching something on here!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>He’s about to open up the browser, until Schmidt snatches the phone from his hands.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“No!  You’ll drain the battery!” He glares at him like a disappointed parent.  “We need to conserve the battery as much as we can!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick slams his hands against the seat in frustration.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“It’s charging, Schmidt!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Winston shrugs his shoulders, as he slowly begins to grab his phone.  “I mean... he’s got a point.  And plus, there’s this puzzle app that I just got, and it’s so cool, man!”  </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“No.  No.  NO!”  Schmidt snaps at the two, securely gripping both of their phones in his hands.  “We need to act like adults!  If we don’t save the battery, then we won’t be able to contact anyone later if there’s an emergency!”  He frantically checks his phone screen.  “Cece STILL hasn’t called me!  How do I know if somethings wrong?!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick finally gives in, hoping that it will get Schmidt to stop talking.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Okay, okay... OKAY!  Fine!”  </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt lets out a loud sigh of relief.  “Good.”  He smiles, as he stares out the window at the bright sky, which was beginning to fill up with dark clouds.  “At least the weather is decent.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>The minute he said that, heavy droplets of rain fall from the sky and down the car windshield.  He looks down and sighs in disappointment. “Never mind.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick stares at the soaked window in complete discontentment and  begins mumbling under his breath.  “I understand you, weather.  I feel your depression on a deep, deep, level right now...”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>After a few minutes of sitting around, twiddling thumbs, and looking out at the gloomy weather, Schmidt gasps and stares at Nick excitedly.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“I have an idea!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>He pulls out a black pouch from the glove compartment and wiggles it in Nick’s face.</p>
          <p>This only leads Nick to let out a groan. </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“This better be good, Schmidt...”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Oh don’t worry,” he says with a huge smile.  “You’ll love it!”  He rubs his hands together in excitement as he unzips the pouch to reveal a plethora of different coupons.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick stares at them with a look of confusion, and then stares back at Schmidt, unamused.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Coupons?  What are we gonna do with coupons?”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Uhm... Organize them, of course!” Schmidt answers with an all-knowing tone, because doesn’t <em>everybody organize their coupons to pass time</em>? “But first, were going to check the dates on all of them to see which are expired, and throw those out!”  He gives Nick an intense stare as he wiggles a coupon in his face, “Except ones for ‘Bargain Bed and Bath... Those never expire!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick swats the coupon away from his face, as he resists the temptation to smack Schmidt along with it.  He shakes his head.  “No thanks... I’ll pass...”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Before he could even think, Schmidt turns Nick’s head around to face him.  “It’ll give you something to do!  Aren’t you bored?”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p><em>If I say yes, will that make him shut up? </em>Nick contemplates.  Desperate times call for desperate measures, and if you ask Nick, this would definitely be considered a desperate time.  He lets out a long whiny sigh and leans his head back.  “Fineeeeeeeeeeee.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Yes!” Schmidt exclaims with kid-like enthusiasm, as he pulls out another pouch filled with even more coupons.  He unzips it and hands it to Nick.  “Alright.  You know the drill.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick’s eyes widen in shock when he sees how large the collection of coupons that Schmidt has is, but he’s in even more shock when he looks inside the pouch, only to discover that every single coupon there was for ‘Bargain Bed and Bath.’  He lets out an exasperated groan.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Are you serious, Schmidt?”  He holds up three coupons and points to the letters spelling out the name of the store.  “They’re all the same!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt looks horrified, as he rips the coupons from Nick’s hand.  “No.  They are not.”  He lines them up so Nick could see.  “Look...”. He points to the coupons, one by one.  “Some are 20% off... Some are $10.00 off...” He ignores Nick’s eye rolls as he passionately waves the last coupon in his face.  “And here we have $5.00 off!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick narrows his eyes and claps his hands sarcastically.  “Congratulations.  You have a wide variety of coupons...”. He points to them, “... and none of them expire so let’s just put them away and do something else.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt shakes his head with a mischievous smile.  He pats Nick’s shoulder and grabs the coupons.  “Here... Lets play a game.”  He grabs the pouch.  “We’re gonna organi—-“</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick already knows what the rest of that sentence will be, and he groans under his breath.  “God help me...”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“—-ize these <em>cup-ons</em>!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>From the back seat, Winston yells in disbelief.  </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“It’s <em>COU-PON</em>, Schmidt!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt ignores Winston’s inevitable correction, as he begins placing the coupons in different spots of the car.  “Lets put the 20%’s up on the windshield... Oh, and the $10.00 offs can go right here next to you, Nick...”. He gives Nick a wink, and marks the final coupon territory.  “And the $5.00 ones can go near the glove compartment!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick turns his head to the back to look at Winston, and they both stare at each other, at a complete loss for words at how ridiculous their lives have become.  </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>There is a long silence until Nick stares at the coupons, and then at Schmidt.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“<em>This</em>... is your idea of a <em>game</em>?”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <ul>
<li>* *</li>
</ul>
          <p> </p>
          <p>After much contemplation, whining, debating, and frustration, Schmidt successfully organized his coupons with the help of Nick and Winston.  </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Well... that was a success!” Schmidt checks the time on his phone.  “Look, it’s 4:30!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Winston scratches his chin in deep thought. “You think the power is back on yet?”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Probably not...” Nick shakes his head.  “The whole power line fell over.  It probably takes a long time to fix.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Damn it!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Winston and Nick both stare at Schmidt, who has his arms crossed in distress, and his eyes wide.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“What’s wrong, Schmidtty?  You left out a few coupons?” </p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Schmidt stares at Nick with eyes like daggers, as he shows him his blank phone screen.  “Cece STILL hasn’t called or texted me!”  He sighs dramatically.  “It’s almost been a full day!  <em>Why</em> hasn’t he called?  Am I not important to her?  Did she find someone else?!”  He frantically rambles on, and stomps his foot on the car carpet like a kid throwing a tantrum.  “How <em>dare</em> she not call!”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick’s head is in his hands, as he bubbles with impatience and frustration.</p>
          <p>“That’s it!  I can’t take any-more of this!”  He opens the car door, and stomps out.  “I need to pee!”  He begins making his way to the entrance of the apartment, when Schmidt follows him from behind.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Wait!  I... I forgot the key.”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Nick turns around and stares at Schmidt in disbelief, really wishing he didn’t hear what he thought he heard.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“You.... what?”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Yeah... I was in a rush to get our phones charging that I kind of forgot the key to our apartment...”. Schmidt shrugs his shoulders and smiles nervously.  “Oops...”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Well, Schmidt.....” Nick breathes deeply, his body oozing with sarcasm and irritation, “You’ve <em>really</em> outdone yourself this time, buddy...”</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>Before anything else could be said, Jess and walking towards the two from the distance, with shopping bags in her hands.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“Hey pals!  Heard a power line got struck and you guys lost power!  It’s back on though...  Crazy, huh?”  She’s all smiles and pats Nick and Schmidt on the back, completely oblivious to the torture they’ve both endured.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>The two just stare at each other and then at Jess.  There is piercing silence.</p>
          <p> </p>
          <p>“So... how was your day?”</p>
          <p></p>
          <div class="yj6qo">
            <p> </p>
          </div>
          <div class="adL">
            <p> </p>
          </div>
        </div>
      </div>
      <div class="hi">
        <p> </p>
      </div>
    </div>
  </div>
  <div class="ajx">
    <p> </p>
  </div>
</div><div class="gA gt acV">
  <p></p>
  <div class="gB xu">
    <p></p>
    <div class="ip iq">
      <p> </p>
    </div>
  </div>
</div>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>LOL ok bye ;)</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>